United Nations Convention against Cybercrime; Strengthening International Cooperation for Combating Certain Crimes Committed by Means of Information and Communications Technology Systems and for the Sharing of Evidence in Electronic Form of Serious Crimes

Convention at a glance

The United Nations Convention against Cybercrime was adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 24 December 2024 in New York by resolution 79/243. The Convention is the first comprehensive global treaty on this matter, which provides States with a range of measures to be undertaken to prevent and combat cybercrime. It also aims to strengthen international cooperation in sharing electronic evidence for serious crimes.

Status of the Convention, from adoption to the Conference of the States Parties

After years of work, the Convention was adopted by the General Assembly on 24 December 2024, opened for signature on 25 October 2025 at a signing ceremony held in Hanoi, Viet Nam, and will remain open for signature at United Nations Headquarters in New York until 31 December 2026. The Convention will enter into force after 40 States become Parties, with its implementation reviewed by the Conference of the States Parties.

For an overview of the signature and ratification processes of the UN Convention against Cybercrime, including model instruments, please see here.

Key events:

Adoption by the General Assembly (24 December 2024): The United Nations Convention against Cybercrime was adopted by consensus through General Assembly resolution 79/243 of 24 December 2024.
Signing Ceremony (25 and 26 October 2025): The Convention opened for signature in Hanoi at the High-Level Conference and Signing Ceremony hosted by the Government of Viet Nam. The ceremony concluded with 72 signatories (Full List of Signatories). Further information about the ceremony can be found at hanoiconvention.org.
Ratification and Accession by States: Following signature, States will complete their internal domestic processes to implement the Convention and, once concluded, deposit an instrument of ratification, acceptance, or approval with the Secretary-General to formally become States Parties to the Convention. States that did not sign the Convention may also become Parties by depositing an instrument of accession.
Entry into Force: The Convention will enter into force 90 days after the 40th instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession is deposited.
Conference of the States Parties: After entry into force, a Conference of the States Parties will convene periodically to improve the capacity of and cooperation among States Parties to achieve the objectives of the Convention and to promote and review its implementation.

The latest status of the treaty will be available in the United Nations Treaty Collection.

Full text of the Convention

Certified true copies of the Convention are available from the Office of Legal Affairs, through the United Nations Treaty Collection. For information purposes, the full text of the Convention is also available in the six official languages below.

Chapters of the Convention

The Convention’s nine chapters provide a comprehensive approach to prevent and combat the global problem of cybercrime while including human rights safeguards. The Convention resolves technical and legal challenges by adjusting traditional means and methods of criminal investigations to the information and communication technology environment and by strengthening international cooperation. For more information visit the summary of the chapters of the Convention.

Pre-ratification compendium

Practical guidance on the Convention's contents, benefits, model instruments for signature and ratification, and the UNODC Global Programme on Cybercrime's menu of services is available here.

Ad Hoc Committee to Elaborate a Comprehensive International Convention on Countering the Use of Information and Communications Technologies for Criminal Purposes

The General Assembly established the Ad Hoc Committee to Elaborate a Comprehensive International Convention on Countering the Use of Information and Communications Technologies for Criminal Purposes, which approved a draft convention in August 2024. The Ad Hoc Committee is further mandated by the General Assembly to hold sessions to prepare the draft rules of procedure for the Conference of the States Parties, and to negotiate a draft protocol supplementary to the Convention, addressing, inter alia, additional criminal offences as appropriate. Read more on the webpages of the Ad Hoc Committee.

Support by UNODC

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime serves as the secretariat to the Ad Hoc Committee and to the future Conference of the States Parties.

UNODC also supports Member States in the process of ratification and implementation of the Convention and through its Global Programme on Cybercrime provides technical assistance and training to States to build the capacity of national authorities to prevent, detect, investigate and prosecute cybercrime.

Contacts

Email:

Secretariat on matters related to the Convention and the Ad Hoc Committee: cybercrimeconvention@un.org

UNODC Global Programme on Cybercrime: unodc-gpc@un.org

Address:

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Vienna International Centre
P.O. Box 500, A-1400 Vienna, Austria